Guidelines for the Harmonization of Navigation Rules and Regulations
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ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMISSION FOR ASIA AND THE PACIFIC Guidelines for the Harmonization of Navigation Rules and Regulations Volume 1. Aids to Navigation UNITED NATIONS New York, 2001 ST/ESCAP/2186 This publication is the output of the ESCAP/MRC (Mekong River Commission) project on harmonization of aids to navigation along the Greater Mekong River funded by the Governments of Finland and the Netherlands. The views expressed in this publication are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations Secretariat. The opinions, figures and estimates set forth in this publication are the responsibility of the author, and should not necessarily be considered as reflecting the views or carrying the endorsement of the United Nations. The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Mention of firm names and commercial products does not imply the endorsement of the United Nations. This publication has been issued without formal editing. CONTENTS Page Preface..............................................................................................................................................v Definitions and abbreviations ........................................................................................................vii 1. BACKGROUND ....................................................................................................................1 2. OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY PROCESS............................................................................3 3. PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GREATER MEKONG RIVER......................5 IV. REVIEW OF EXISTING AIDS TO NAVIGATION SYSTEMS........................................18 A. Cambodia ......................................................................................................................18 B. China .............................................................................................................................21 C. Lao People=s Democratic Republic ...............................................................................24 D. Myanmar .......................................................................................................................27 E. Thailand.........................................................................................................................29 F. Viet Nam........................................................................................................................31 V. REVIEW OF STUDIES ON AIDS TO NAVIGATION......................................................35 VI. REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL AND REGIONAL RECOMMENDATIONS...............39 A. IALA Maritime Buoyage System .................................................................................39 B. CEVNI/SIGNI...............................................................................................................42 C. Uniform System of Buoys and Shore Marks for Inland Waterways in Asia and the Far East.............................................................................................................45 VII. COMPARISON AND ANALYSIS......................................................................................47 A. Lateral buoys.................................................................................................................47 B. Isolated danger buoys....................................................................................................48 C. Bifurcation buoys ..........................................................................................................49 D. Mid-channel or safe water buoys..................................................................................50 E. Bankwise marks on land...............................................................................................50 F. Crossing marks ..............................................................................................................51 G. Obstacle and danger marks ...........................................................................................52 H. Signs/signals for restricted passage ..............................................................................53 I. Others ...........................................................................................................................56 VIII. PRINCIPLES AND FEATURES OF THE AIDS TO NAVIGATION SYSTEM iii ON THE GREATER MEKONG RIVER ...........................................................................57 IX. IMPORTANT ISSUES TO BE CONSIDERED IN THE HARMONIZATION OF AIDS TO NAVIGATION SYSTEMS................................................................................60 Table. Study on contract of mark colour with background colour ....................................36 Figures 1. Sketch map of the Greater Mekong River ...............................................................7 2. Channel training works on the Lancang River in China..........................................8 3. Reefs in the upper section of the river .....................................................................9 4. Rapids in the upper section of the river .................................................................10 5. Stretch of the river with rapids near Vientiane......................................................11 6. Section in the middle stretch of the river...............................................................13 7. Waterway in the Mekong Delta area .....................................................................15 8. Beacons used in Cambodia ....................................................................................19 9. Broken beacon hindering navigation .....................................................................20 10. Buoys in Cambodia................................................................................................20 11. Buoys and marks on the Yangtze River.................................................................22 12. Beacons in the Lao People=s Democratic Republic ...............................................24 13. Floating mark in the Lao People=s Democratic Republic ......................................25 14. Sketch of a collapsible beacon...............................................................................25 15. Shore marks on the Ayeyarwady River .................................................................27 16. Bamboo buoy.........................................................................................................27 17. Use of buoys and land panels ................................................................................29 18. Typical layout of aids to navigation on the Chao Phraya River ............................30 19. Aids to navigation in Viet Nam .............................................................................31 20. Colour test in 1979 and 1980.................................................................................35 Annexes I. Questionnaire used in the ESCAP/MRC project on harmonization of aids to navigation on the Greater Mekong River...............................................................66 II. General account of inland water traffic and inland waterways in the Greater Mekong subregion............................................................................71 III. Comparison of aids to navigation systems..............................................................72 IV. Summary of China national standards on aids to navigation on inland waterways73 V. Design drawing of beacon in the Lao People=s Democratic Republic ....................77 VI. Traffic signs and signals on inland waterways in the Lao People=s Democratic Republic...................................................................................................................78 iv VII. Aids to navigation system on inland waterways in Myanmar.................................81 VIII. Aids to navigation used on the Chao Phraya River in Thailand .............................82 IX. Viet Nam navigation aids regulation in 1992..........................................................86 X. Viet Nam inland waterways signalization system (in 2001)...................................87 XI. IALA Maritime Buoyage System............................................................................88 XII. European Code for Inland Waterways/Signs and Signals on Inland Waterways....94 XIII. Uniform System of Buoys and Shore Marks for Inland Waterways in Asia and the Far East recommended by ECAFE in 1957 ....................................................102 References........................................................................................................................106 v vi Preface The ESCAP region is naturally endowed with rich navigable rivers, lakes and canals. Many countries have favourable natural conditions and great potential to develop inland water transport, such as Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, the Democratic People=s Republic of Korea, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, the Lao People=s Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Viet Nam. The total navigable length of inland waterways